MLB Daily Fantasy Helper: Monday 8/10/15

Can Chris Sale right the ship tonight after three subpar fantasy performances in his last four games?

If you've never played daily fantasy baseball before, it's time to start. Unlike traditional leagues, you're able to select the players you want on that specific day only, giving you a different squad to root for each and every day.

And while there are many platforms to play daily fantasy baseball on, one of our favorites is from our partners over at DraftKings.com, a place where over $300,000,000 will be won this baseball season. Never played over there before? It's time for that to change. Sign up now and use our optimal lineups here at numberFire.com to crush the competition. You won't regret it.

As for today's lineups -- those can be found here. The information below is to help you understand why particular players are being picked, because we don't want you going into the things completely blind. We want to help you. Keep in mind, however, that things often change up until the games start, so make sure you're refreshing the optimal lineups as close to the start of games as possible.

Top Pitchers

High-Cost Pitcher

Chris Sale – Sale has looked like one of the best pitchers in baseball through his first 21 starts of the season. He ranks second among all starters in both FIP (2.51), xFIP (2.49) and SIERA (2.41) while leading the majors in strikeouts per nine innings at 11.71. Although he has looked somewhat human in his last couple starts, the White Sox ace draws a great matchup tonight against an Angels squad who rank just 22nd in the league in wOBA (.299) against left-handed pitching this season. Sale's price tag has back down to a reasonable $12,000 on DraftKings and $11,100 on FanDuel due to his recent struggles, but look for the Cy Young hopeful to bounce back in a big way tonight and for him to reach value easily at home against the Angels.

Brett Anderson – With aces like Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke at the top of the Dodgers' rotation, it's easy to overlook the rest of Los Angeles' starters. However, Anderson has quietly put together a very impressive resume so far this season. The Dodgers' starter has earned a 3.42 xFIP and 3.34 SIERA while holding batters from both sides of the plate to less than a .305 wOBA. Although he only strikes out 6.26 batters per nine innings, Anderson is very much on my radar tonight against the Nationals who rank just 16th in the league in wOBA (.309) and 19th in wRC+ (94) against southpaws this season. The Dodgers' starter makes a solid value play in all formats at just $7,100 on DraftKings and $7,700 on FanDuel.

Paul Goldschmidt – Goldschmidt has managed to put together another monster campaign this season. He currently ranks second in the majors in wOBA (.427), third in wRC+ (173) and has crushed pitching from both sides of the plate. Despite not having the platoon advantage against Phillies' starter Aaron Harang, the Diamondbacks' star is still very much in play tonight considering he has amassed a .411 wOBA, .222 ISO and .991 OPS against right-handed pitching this year. Vegas expects tonight's matchup between Arizona and Philadelphia to be the highest scoring on tonight's slate with an over/under of 8.5 and Goldschmidt will likely have a lot to do with the Diamondbacks' high total. He is our number one overall projected hitter on the board tonight.

Ben Zobrist – The Royals picked up Zobrist at the trade deadline as one of their many moves to make a push towards the World Series and he has not disappointed. In nine games since joining Kansas City, Zobrist has hit three homers with eight RBI while accumulating a ridiculous .460 wOBA, .400 ISO and 1.120 OPS. While nine games is probably too small of a sample size to get excited about, when you look at what the Royals' slugger has done against left-handed pitching all season long it is much easier to understand why we are so high on him tonight. Zobrist has destroyed southpaws this year, earning a .393 wOBA, .167 ISO and .912 OPS. He should have his way with Tigers' southpaw Matt Boyd and his 4.94 xFIP against right-handed batters.

Cesar Hernandez – Don't look now, but the Phillies offense is starting to look pretty formidable. With both Domonic Brown and Chase Utley rounding into form following extended stints on the disabled list, Philadelphia seems to have found the offensive rhythm that they were missing for the majority of the season. A big part of Philly's recent success can be attributed to the hot hitting of Hernandez. Since the All-Star break, the Phillies' young infielder has earned a .331 wOBA and 110 wRC+, but has just been tearing the cover off of the ball since the calendar flipped to August, amassing a .386 wOBA, .152 ISO and .915 so far this month. Diamondbacks' starter Rubby De La Rosa has been absolutely demolished by lefties this season, posting a 6.38 FIP against lefties while they have earned a .399 wOBA against him. Look for Hernandez to stay hot tonight against the struggling De La Rosa.

Jay Bruce – Bruce has faired very well against right-handed pitching this season. He's put up a .340 wOBA, .237 ISO and .804 OPS and gets a strong matchup tonight against Padres' starter Ian Kennedy. Kennedy has allowed lefties to hit for a .348 wOBA while earning a terrible 5.01 FIP against left-handed batters on the season. He has also managed to give up a whopping 2.02 home runs per nine innings to lefties. The Reds' outfielder is in a great spot tonight and can be had for a very reasonable price across the industry.